:Six Feet Under… and then some.

The most interesting thing of note on the flight back was a six foot tall swede who kept kicking the back of my seat.  Oh, he was drunk (actually snuck his own beers on board).  Did I mention that he also spoke filipino with a gay tone to it?  Freaky.  Headed for Sabang Beach, he said.  The filipinas beside him were initially amused, but later on started getting pissed at him.  "Don tatz mi!" "DON TATZ MI!"

I don’t quite get how they can speak relatively flawless italian, yet totally screw up english…

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Hey, here was a change!  Only one person clapped their hands when we landed in manila (and only one or two claps at that), AND no cellphone went off until the fasten seatbelt sign was switched off maybe I was just lucky

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Why do people insist on talking loudly when they’re right beside each other?  Do they believe that everyone else in the cabin wants to hear their stories?  And these are boilerplate conversations… "saan ka galing…saan ka pupunta…taga-saan ka?"  Oh, and please, yes, just jam up the aisles while you make tsismis with someone you just met on the flight.  Its fun.  really.

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The national pinoy nickname is "Sssssst! Ssssst!"  Goodness knows how many people respond to that.  It sure beats trying to pronounce the names with the "H."  Y’kow… Bhoy, Gherlet, Mhyke…

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Surprise, surprise… chocolates do disappear quickly

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Man, that’s really thick fog out there.

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I can’t believe it.  9 kilos of Swiss chocolates.  Well, fair trade, considering the X number of kilos of corned beef I brought over here.  I swear, I wonder what it is about pinoys and corned beef.  Sigh.  Considering these chocos take first priority, it looks like I’ll have to ship home my clothes by freight (heck of a lot cheaper than excess bagagge).  I miss travelling light.  I remember ten days in Australia where all I brought was one knapsack.  Customs officials kept looking behind me to see if boxes would magically appear. Of course, I didn’t know anyone there, and no one requested me bring anything home.

Hmmm, but then again, when I compare that to what my sister has had to lug to and from the philippines… 20 freeze dried Jollibee Champs (for my brother), tons luggage, I believe a whole lechon made it through somehow (don’t know the story for that one), and various other knick-knacks.

But still… 9 kilos of chocolates.  That’s just a personal record. Gawd.

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The last few days have seen a flurry of activity.  Activities which help make me reflect on the person I’ve become, and who I could be.  Activities spent in the company of family.  Activities and events that make you question the status quo.  Activities which define who we are.

As usual, the end of it brings a range of emotions.  Too many and varied really to hash out over this medium.  Maybe I’m just not in the mood, or maybe I just want to hang onto them - to keep it to myself a little while longer.  Perhaps I’ll string it out one at a time in the future.  Perhaps.

Overall, it was a good trip.  An excellent respite from reality.  But then, well… I like keeping it real.  Bottom line is: I’m glad to be coming home.

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I can’t believe the sun actually chose to rise today :)  It actually even looks like a summer’s day :)  Granted, the bits of snow on the ground reveal the cold truth, but I can just look toward the sky and bask in thoughts of warm summer days (nothwithstanding the fact I’m wearing a parka over my sweater and shirt).  We make our own reality, right?

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I am so mababaw.  I can’t believe how amused I was watching the YM icon "wake up" as I signed in.  And then, there’s that killer smile…Awwww…

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I finally finished my TV marathon yesterday, which means I can either:

     a. start reading USMLE Step 1 First Aid

     b. start another marathon

     c. I can’t think of anything else…

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I can’t wait to go diving again.  Every part of it.  From the disorientation wrought about by backrolling into the blue, to coming up sometimes covered with snot (or blood), but with one heck of a story to tell.  Heck, I even miss cleaning the unit afterwards.

One more week. 

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Ah, Monday.

The start of the week marks the start of my days being mine once again.  With everyone trooping off to work and school, I more or less get left to my own devices.  Not that I’m complaining, mind you, but then the truth of the matter is that I am too much of a couch potato these days.  For someone with nothing much on their agenda, I find so many things to keep me from reading the First Aid book.  Ah, yes.  Reality represented by a book.

I remember during the frantic days just before the boards how easy it became to just skim through the books.  I would borrow Janice’s First-Aid in the afternoon, and return it later that evening.  Speed reading?  Maybe.  Then again, it may have been the realization of the futility of the exercise, but that’s currently mere speculation at this point. 

I think this reluctance to read again is the result of inertia.  Again, speculation.  Well, this week, I fully intend to start reading it once again…

Or I could just go out and start a snowball fight.  yeah.  sounds better.

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I bitch and moan about snow in general.  Its cold, slippery, and wet.  But watching it as it gently drifts by your window blanketing the countryside in a mantle of pure white is always a sight to behold.  So here I am right now,  looking at the skylight as snow gently falls onto the warm glass - melting it.  Here I am, watching snowflakes die.

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How hard is it to describe pain?  The following exchange represents the great strides I have taken in my medical education in proper communication with patients:

"My stomach hurts…"

"Yeah, what kind of pain?"

"What do you mean what kind of pain?  My stomach hurts!"

"Uh, y’know… is it crampy?  burning?  sharp?"

"What’s crampy?"

All I could come up with were squishy actions with my hands…ala - Rae.  Baddabing-baddaboom.

Relatives make the worst patients.  All your years of hard work mean squat.  Especially when it comes to matters of your own health.  In this day and age of evidence-based medicine, I still have to come across a journal about "pasma" and the evils of washing your hands after ironing your clothes.  Nevertheless, the influence of eastern medicine is strong in our culture.  And hey, who can argue against the soothing qualities of a good massage? All we really need to do is just realign our chi.

It would’ve been interesting though.  A reflexology class in med school.

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Happiness is a pile of freshly laundered clothes - right of the dryer - on a cold winter’s day.  The scent of fabric softener, and the feel of warmth against your skin is truly a delight to the senses.

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I’ve rediscoverd old friends in old songs on this trip, re-examining them under the microscope of new-found facts, courtesy of the web.  When will I get started on my First Aid book?  Or even all the DVDs here?  At least I’ve broken the cycle of vicious TV, having missed several episodes of my oft watched shows.  Ah well, you always find something to distract you, neh?

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I know what I want to do today… I want to just vegge out here at home…

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Went to Murten yesterday with my dad.  Its one of those places dab smack on the Röstigraben (linguistic divide), which means that although it is technically in the suisse romande side of the CH, most of the signs amd the people there speak German.   Anyway, the difference is also reflected in its architecture, seeing as its one of the best preserved medieval towns in Switzerland, still surrounded by its 15th century walls.  The name of the town stems from the word moriduno, which means lakeside fortress.

And what amazing things can you do here?

Eat.

Come on, its the middle of winter, you’re not exactly about to try water sports.  Besides, even the restaurant in the hotel beside the castle was closed for its annual whatever.

So its eat. eat. eat.  I’ve put on six kilos in my time here.  All centered around my gut.  I swear, when I put my shoes on, I can feel my guts rising through my diaphragm.

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The trip back from Murten was a bonus. We eschewed the highway, and decided to travel along the national road.  At times, the trees and grass were covered in frost, while at higher altitudes, the fields were just covered with snow, with the sun trying its best to shine throught the fog.

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In what can be called one of the perks of living in a landlocked country, my dad and I drove to Montreux to visit my brother in the bar where he works:

"Hey Abi (my brother’s colleague), have you seen my brother?"

"oh, he’s not here…"

"He’s off today?"

"Yes, and he went to Germany."

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Today is Monday, and thankfully its both a work and school day.  Perhaps today, I can give my little pot belly a much needed rest.

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Hey, today’s weather wasn’t so bad!  A bit cloudy, but the temperature was fine (+2!)I was actually able to just wear a t-shirt under my regular jacket

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I guess there’s doing things, and then there’s doing things the right way.  My day started off in the most mundane of ways, that is to say, taking the garbage out to the dump.  This included taking the christmas tree out and chucking it all in the christmas-tree/dead-leaves pile.  Funny to have to toss out a perfectly good tree during the Orthodox Christmas day.  Anyways, the rest of the morning was spent catering to what my brother would call vanity - otherwise known as his job. He took us (the rest of the family) to his studio on the outskirts of Geneva for a little photoshoot.  I must say that looking at the proofs, all I could really see was my belly.  That little pot that has become my faithful companion on this trip.  I guess its no surprise to say that the majority of my time here is spent eating. Thus, lunch today was just another reminder that my little friend is here to stay.  And grow.  We started lunch with and apperetif of champagne and escargots.  For the main course, I had chateaubriand with fries, washed down with a nice Syrah.  It was just soooo good, I didn’t need the sauce for most of it. Of course, the best part of the meal was that it was shared with my family. 

After getting home from lunch, my dad and I had to step out once again for a brief run to town to buy meat and candies.  Surprisingly, in spite of buying what seemed like a whole side of pork, the meat came out cheaper than the jelly  bellies we went out to get.

From the butcher’s shop, dad let me drive his car.  You gotta just love 6-speed multitronics.  And German technology. That and empty country roads, where you can just watch the speedometer race off, while the car doesn’t even raise a whimper. Vorsprung durch Technik. Its. just. too. much.  fun.

I wonder what I’m doing tomorrow?

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"Did you bring swimming trunks?"

Excuse me?  I’m sorry, I must’ve forgotten. It wasn’t high on my priority list, seeing as its the middle of winter…

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I will admit, it was with some initial apprehension that I allowed myself to be "kidnapped" to the alpentherme.  After all, an outdoor pool high up in the mountains during winter seemed a poor alternative to the nice cozy loft I currently inhabited.  Indeed, on the way up to Leukerbad, the snow started getting thicker, while the thermometer reading started dropping steadily.  While still in the valley, it went down to -11 degrees Centigrade.  Once up there however, bathed in nice warm sunshine, the temperature was a nice, toasty -4.

Leukerbad (Loèche-les-Bains) is a resort town blessed with hot springs.  It contains a spa facility that houses several pools, including an outdoor pool surrounded by mountains covered in snow.   The pools themselves have various features, such as showers, water jets, and lots and lots of bubble makers (I’m sure there’s a technical term for this, but I’m too lazy to Google it right now.)

There’s something magical about freezing your ears off, while the rest of your body luxuriates in bubbled splendor.  All I needed to do was just reach out of the pool to grab a handful of snow.  At times, the mist rising from the pool was so thick, you couldn’t even see your own outstretched foot.  Occasionally, it was fun to stand outside of the pool in sub-zero temperatures, knowing that relief was just a few feet away.

Its an experience I would defineitely recommend to anyone in the area, worth repeating again and again.

And hey, now I’ve got new trunks!

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Its going out there.  My belly, that is.  That’s all I’ve been doing, eating, eating, and eating.  Tying up my boots have become something of an adventure.  So, to my pregnant friends out there, I empathize.

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The weather here is steadily improving.  Since its climbed above freezing, the snowing has stopped, now replaced by rain.  Slushies, anyone?

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Oh, yeah, the purpose of this trip?  After 11 years apart, all my dad’s kids have finally been reunited.  Considering all our individual future plans, its something that doesn’t and won’t be happening that often. 

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